Ira Glass-related stories
Posted Mar 30th 2009 1:38PM by Mike Moody
Filed under: TV on the Bigscreen, Celebrities, Reality-Free, Dollhouse
No, you didn't miss a scoop about a
Serenity sequel or that long-rumored
Buffy movie finally getting made. Mr. Whedon will appear in a special live simulcast performance of Chicago Public Radio's
This American Life on April 23.
The program will beam into 400 movie screens nationwide and will feature
TAL host, and
Buffy fan, Ira Glass and guests sharing stories connected by a central theme, "Return to the Scene of the Crime." The simulcast will feature show regulars Dan Savage, Starlee Kine, Mike Birbiglia, David Rakoff and Dave Hill along with
Dollhouse producer Whedon who will deliver a "special musical performance."
Continue reading Reminder - Joss Whedon is coming to a theater near you in April
Posted Jun 12th 2008 7:04PM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Web, Celebrities, Reality-Free
When you make a living online and a big part of your job is to spend the entire day surfing around a hundred web sites, you begin to think that you've seen everything there is to see on the web. At least the good stuff. But sometimes you come across a site that makes you smile and say to yourself, "this is great!"
That's what I thought when I found the Sound of Young America podcast.
Continue reading The Sound of Young America interviews everyone!
Posted Jul 3rd 2007 6:20PM by Adam Finley
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, Web
Some very cool news for fans of This American Life, the Showtime version of the long-running public radio mainstay. The first season of the series is now available on iTunes for $1.99 per episode (six episodes total) or $10.99 for the whole season. You can also download the radio version for free, just in case you didn't know.
I'll admit I didn't get into This American Life, the radio series or the TV program, until recently after hearing for many years how compelling and well-made it is. Those people were right, and it's become a permanent fixture on both my Tivo and my iPod. If they made a This American Life pamphlet, I would subscribe to that, too.
Continue reading This American Life now on iTunes
Posted Jun 18th 2007 10:01AM by Kevin Kelly
Filed under: OpEd, Battlestar Galactica, The Shield, Entourage, TV Squad Lists, Hidden Palms
First I thought this would be a summer filled with possibly watching one or two summer series, and then catching up on the growing stack of books in my "to be read" pile ... but somehow it's morphed into the "DVR + TV shows on DVD Summer of Rock " *fanfare*. It's actually not that dramatic, but I like to stick fanfare in whenever I can. Theme songs are one thing, but fanfare can pepper mundane events with joy. "Here's your latte, sir." *fanfare* See what I mean?
Continue reading What I'm watching this summer: Kevin's list
Posted Mar 23rd 2007 1:43PM by Anna Johns
Filed under: Showtime, Web, Documentary
Despite all the rave reviews and my own personal adoration for
This American Life, I did not subscribe to Showtime so I could see the televised version of the PBS radio program. But Showtime is crafty. The network has posted
this week's premiere episode of
This American Life online (for free!) and now I am in love with it. I never thought that
This American Life needed pictures to go with its stories, but the story of Chance the bull seems like it would be lost without video.
Take a look at the premiere and tell me what you think. I like it, but I still think I'm too cheap to get Showtime. I keep hoping they'll all be available on iTunes.
(By the way, if you are a fan of
This American Life, you'll probably get a kick out of
this parody by San Francisco sketch comedy group,
Kasper Hauser. Their Ira Glass impression is dead-on.)
[Via
Pop Candy]
Posted Feb 23rd 2007 11:03AM by Kevin Kelly
Filed under: Showtime, Premium Cable, OpEd, Documentary, Early Looks
As we've previously
reported,
This American Life is coming to Showtime, and we were lucky enough to get a look at the first four episodes. It's no secret that I had
high hopes for this show, and was all set to have them crushed, trampled, and stomped upon. However, I'm happy to report that that my hopes are still intact, at least after having seen four episodes. There's still room for my hopes to be smashed into a million crystalline fragments down the road.
First off, if you've never heard an episode of
This American Life, it's high time that you head to iTunes and subscribe to their
podcast. It's one of the best radio shows I've ever heard, and presents stories from Americans that you'll never hear anywhere else. It's pure documentary work where the hosts and interviewers don't overshadow the subjects, and features as much humor as it does touching drama. A real gem on the radio dial, and it's a labor of love on Public Radio International, which is more famous for its content, and not for the fortunes they pay their hosts.
Continue reading This American Life -- an early look
Posted Feb 22nd 2007 9:26AM by Anna Johns
Filed under: Showtime, Documentary
I am getting Showtime.
When I read that
This American Life was
coming to television, I was cautiously optimistic. Ira Glass and crew do such a terrific job telling stories with audio that I admit I was worried about video taking away some of the intimacy. After watching
this trailer (it's also embedded after the jump) I was blown away. It looks as beautiful as
This American Life sounds. Apparently the producers of the television show found photographers and editors who think the way
This American Life is produced. Just like the radio broadcast, the camera shots are from unusual angles. It's pretty much the opposite of anything you'd see on MTV.
This American Life premieres on Showtime on March 22.
Continue reading This American Life TV show trailer - VIDEO
Posted Dec 8th 2006 4:45PM by Kevin Kelly
Filed under: Showtime, Programming, Documentary
When I was a kid growing up, public radio meant two things: boring, and more boring. I'm not sure when the exact moment was where I did a complete turnaround and started liking it, but I know it was at some point college. I stumbled across ambient music on
Musical Starstreams, reveled in the extreme beauty and weirdness of
Joe Frank's various shows, waxed nostalgic for an age I wasn't even alive in during
A Prairie Home Companion, and learned about the world from the synonymous-with-coffee voice of
Bob Edwards on
Morning Edition (after 30 years on NPR, he was shitcanned and sent packing. He now has his own show on XM Radio, take that NPR!).
Continue reading This American Life: Act 1 -- TV show imminent
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